Got A Better Idea?

Chicago`s 1992 World`s Fair May Be Dead, But You Can Keep Its Spirit Alive

Propose An Alternative And Win

December 29, 1985|By Paul Weingarten.

Diane Legge Lohan, a partner in the architectural firm of Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, has a festival in mind but a special type of festival: ``My proposal would be to use parks--Lincoln, Humboldt, Douglas, Jackson, McKinley --for an organized festival of communities. It could be similar to a Taste of Chicago but with the entertainment value of an air and water show and the educational impact of a Museum of Science and Industry exhibit. The idea is to use parks in each community to feature that area`s qualities and character, industry and education, retail development and ethnic background.

``Many of our communities don`t really have a sense of place in the city as a whole or any kind of center. They`re strip communities; they got built up along streets, but there is no focus for a residential or commercial area. This could be an excuse to create parks or town squares in suburban areas. In the city, our rapid transit radiates from the Loop. It might be nice to cut across those lines and circle the city with the `L,` connecting various rapid transit lines and parks farther out. Maybe this project could create a necklace of parks around the Chicago area. These festivals would let us get to know each other again.

``You might be able to go to Pilsen or an Italian neighborhood and learn to cook or to dance or to sing, learn to do something while you`re there.``

Robert Falls, new Goodman Theatre artistic director, says: ``I`d like to see a major outdoor amphitheater built, perhaps at Navy Pier, for an outdoor Shakespeare festival in the summer. It would be unbelievably popular, and I think theater should be made available at the lowest possible price, which is free, and ought to involve the entire resources of the Chicago theater community. Something like this can cut across all the barriers of class and race within the city and bring a wide cross-section of people together. I think that the great plays of Shakespeare, Moliere and the Greeks have a great deal to say about who we are and how we can be better citizens. If theater can do that--teach about citizenship and brotherhood--then I think this is a city that can well support that effort.``

3. Prizes will be awarded in two categories: Under 15 years of age and 15 and over.

4. First prize in the under 15 category is a $500 donation to the winner`s school in the winner`s name and a one-year family membership in one of the cultural institutions listed below. (The school must be located in Cook, DuPage, Lake, Kane, McHenry or Will Counties. Winners under 15 living outside these six counties may designate their contribution to be sent to one of the cultural institutions on the list.) Second prize is a $200 donation to the school and a one-year family membership. Third prize is a $100 donation to the school and a one-year family membership. Other entries of special merit will be recognized with certificates of honorable mention.

5. First prize in the 15 and over age category is a $1,000 donation to a school or cultural institution in the metropolitan area in the winner`s name and a one-year family membership in one of the cultural institutions listed below. Second prize is a $500 donation to a school or cultural institution and a one-year family membership. Third prize is a $200 donation and a one-year family membership. Other entries of special merit will be recognized with certificates of honorable mention.

6. Winners allow The Chicago Tribune to publish their entries and to use their names and likenesses for publicity purposes.

7. Entries must be on original entry forms or on an original handwritten or typed reproduction of the form. Copies of the Tribune are available for inspection at libraries and at The Tribune`s Public Service Office at 435 N. Michigan Ave. NO MECHANICALLY REPRODUCED ENTRIES WILL BE ACCEPTED.

8. You may submit one entry per person. Entries should be 25 to 1,000 words. Entrants warrant that entries are their own original work.

9. Entries will be judged by the editors of SUNDAY, based on originality of concept and thoughtfulness of presentation, and winners will be notified by phone. Winning entries will be published in the March 9, 1986, issue of SUNDAY. The Chicago Tribune is unable to answer phone, mail or other inquiries about this contest.

10. Artwork or photos illustrating an entry essay are acceptable, but none will be returned unless the entrant includes a folded self-addressed manila envelope big enough to hold the artwork, cardboard for protection and return postage. Written entries become property of The Chicago Tribune. The Tribune will make every effort to return artwork as provided in this rule but cannot be responsible for inadvertent loss or damage to these items.